Call for Papers

The purpose of Nordcode is to stimulate scholarly discussion and act as a platform to support growing a design research community by encouraging established as well as emerging researchers in the field. Scholars, doctoral students, practitioners and others from the fields of design studies, design history and culture, media, communication and branding studies, interaction design and related fields, are welcome to take part in the seminar with working papers. The papers may present finished research, work-in-progress or initial ideas, as we believe in the value of discussion and co-development of proposed ideas.

Important dates

Extended abstract: Abstracts are invited with a length up to 1000 words. If the abstract is accepted, the working paper will also be accepted, as long as the working paper is in line with the content of the abstract, properly completed and meets sufficient quality standards.

Notification: The Nordcode reviewers will provide short feedback on submitted abstracts with comments and advice for alterations.

Paper submission: Accepted abstracts will be invited to be submitted as working papers of up to 2500 words in length. Although we recommend APA references, the structure and format of paper submissions is free as we encourage discussion across disciplinary borders.

Topic: Intuition and evidence in design

The core of designers’ work may be said to revolve around the subjectively experienced and perceived. Often, the contribution of designers is, or is expected to be, the ‘wow’ factor; that, which uniquely sets something apart from something else. In this sense, design adds dimensions of aesthetics, empathy, pleasure, and usefulness, and in wider terms to meaning, desirability, identity, and culture.

Yet, the work of the designer is constantly evolving, and, in line with the human concerns it addresses, also finds itself, or is forced into, new avenues of application. Designers of today work not only with enhancing the subjective qualities of physical artefacts, but also with creating solutions involving services, organisations, environments, and systems in various contexts, and for meeting a diverse range of needs. These may be in places, situations, and contexts far from the personal and well-known territory of the individual designer.

Design as a discipline may be described as oscillating in a continuum between the artistic, the humanistic, and the scientific. None of them can be removed without removing the essence of design. Yet, a designer can be anyone trained in crafts, arts, engineering, architecture, or in fields of science and technology. In fact, design as a term has become so loosely defined that anyone who employs a human centric approach to solving problems may be called a designer.

However, our approaches to addressing change, including how to understand needs, solve problems, and create solutions, varies widely depending on how we understand design. Designers may on one hand be the sole locus, ideator and creator of change, or, as we increasingly experience; take the role of the facilitator and moderator in nurturing such processes of change. Regardless, in the designerly role, designers need to negotiate the movement from one condition to the other, and thus need the tools to argue for the quality of the solution, whether sensory, cognitive, emotional, instrumental, or in other ways defined.

In this Nordcode seminar, therefore, we explore the boundaries of designerly work, that of assuming and knowing– in other words, the dichotomy intuition and evidence – in design. Given the situation outlined above, we may claim that both are needed in design. However, they may not be intuitive, nor easy to negotiate, or explain. How do we balance the need for both intuition and evidence in the processes of design, whatever we create? Intuition may be a powerful force in instigating change. But intuition cannot roam free. We need evidence to support what we do. However, if what we do is in the domain of the experienced, perceived, and interpreted, how do we know that our solution, whether individually or collaboratively created, ‘works’? What can we know about relevant and valid principles of design, and how may we find out?

We are inviting practitioners, researchers, educators, students and other to submit working papers which explore, problematize and reflect upon the intertwining of intuition and evidence in design. Questions we would like to address, thus include, but are not limited to:

When do we use/need assumptions in design? When do we use/need knowledge in design? What for, why, and how?

How do we balance the movement between intuition and evidence in our work as practitioners, researchers, and students of design?

What is the role of the design, what can designers contribute with, in a world of fake news and scepticism towards transparency and freedom?

Is there a risk of trusting intuition? When do we need evidence in design? When do we need intuition? What for, why, and how?

How does the need for both intuition and evidence affect the various roles and activities of design?

What are the implications if change is introduced based only on intuition?

Is there an ethical dilemma which we need to address more deeply, or in other ways?

Is it possible to obtain ‘evidence’ that a design ‘works’, or that a process of designing is ‘appropriate’ or ‘relevant’? Is this even a relevant question?

These questions may be explored relating to whatever type of artefact we choose to shape through design – product form, services, critical design, experiences, environments, or others. In addition to the special topic of the seminar, we also welcome submissions that fall under the various other traditional Nordcode themes within communicative design, including design, semiotics/semantics, form design, design syntactics, design aesthetics, design research methodology, design processes, tools and methods, identity aspects of product form, form perception, form experience and pleasure, cultural signification of design, and points of contact with visual arts.

In the informal and constructive spirit of Nordcode, we emphasise and encourage the following:

the focus on working papers rather than finished work (although such work is not excluded),

the opportunity to discuss and develop emerging concepts and question as well as established ones, the focus on assessing contributions based on potential and providing constructive, forward looking rather than normative advice in reviews, in order to support the creation of an including and encouraging community.

In order to support the above, innovative formats are encouraged apart from the written text, which allow for creative, critical and constructive discussions to stimulate the development of emergent ideas and researchers.

Dear Friends and Colleagues, the deadline for abstracts for the 16th Nordcode seminar is extended until 30 April. The topic, “Traces of the Design Process”, beautifully harmonises with the venue for this year’s seminar, The Design Archive, with its unique collection of designers’ and artists’ work. While we especially welcome contributions on the topic of sketching, we are also welcoming contributions related to any of the traditional Nordcode themes within communicative design, including design semiotics/semantics, form design, design syntactics, design aesthetics, design research methodology, design processes, tools and methods, identity aspects of product form, form perception, form experience and pleasure, cultural signification of design, and points of contact with visual arts. We are looking forward to seeing you in Nybro, 7-9 November 2017!

Nordcode together with Designarkivet in Nybro, are hosting the 16th Nordcode seminar 7-9 November 2017. We hereby invite you to participate by submitting work on the role of sketching in design.

Topic: Traces of the Design Process

The purpose of Nordcode is to stimulate scholarly discussion and act as a platform to support growing a design research community by encouraging established as well as emerging researchers in the field. Scholars, doctoral students, practitioners and others from the fields of design studies, design history and culture, media, communication and branding studies, interaction design and related fields, are welcome to take part in the seminar with working papers. The papers may present finished research, work-in-progress or initial ideas, as we believe in the value of discussion and co-development of proposed ideas.

Sketches are material remains of individual and collective design processes. Designarkivet in Nybro, which is a detached department of Kalmar konstmuseum, gathers design sketches, drawings and reference materials from different design fields. The archive contains approximately 120,000 sketches from more than 700 Swedish designers. Some material is donated in connection with retiring or the closure of a design firm; some designers donate materials continuously. It is clear that the designers themselves put value on their material and sees the importance of saving the material for posterity. A large amount of the donated material also have a high artistic quality.

The importance of having sketching skill in the design profession cannot be overlooked, but sketching is not a uniform activity. The sketches may have various shapes and purposes. They differ between individuals, between different design fields, between different production methods and products.

Despite the significance of sketching for the design profession, historically and still, the sketches themselves are in many ways taken for granted. Sketches have not received the attention they deserve, neither in design research nor in other literature about design processes and design methods. An illustrative example is when words related to sketch and sketching are missing from the registry list in methodological books.

The ways of working in design are also rapidly changing in the digital era. Is there a future for traditional sketch work or are sketches obsolete? What comes instead? What will we save for posterity tomorrow?

The topic of the 2017 Nordcode seminar: “Traces of the Design Process” takes its starting point in the role of sketching in the design process, and in the significance of the sketch for designers, today and tomorrow. Here are some proposed topics:

Sketches as a way to increase our understanding of creative processes. What purposes can be linked to the sketch and sketching? Who is the sketch for? What is its purpose? What is the role of the sketch when designing?

The sketch and its value. What is the significance of the sketch? What should be saved for posterity? How can the material be used in research?

The role of sketching. Sketching can be done using pen, paper, digital media, prototyping material, etc.; tools which are used for different purposes. What happens if sketching is removed from the process? How does it impact the result of the act of designing?

Physical traces of design processes in products. The effect of different forms of production on the relationship between process and product. What traces of the process are preserved with new ways to produce, such as the 3-D printer?

Digital consequences. More and more designers are using computers to do sketch work. The security in traditional physical archives are usually very high, but the issue of security becomes more complicated when design work and processes are saved in a digital format. How can we secure digital content for future research?

Several areas adjacent to the questions above can be included in the seminar topic. In addition to the special topic of the seminar, we also welcome submissions that fall under the various other traditional Nordcode themes within communicative design.

Working papers are expected to have a final length of 2500 words. Although we recommend APA references, the structure and format of paper submissions is free as we encourage discussion across disciplinary borders. In the informal spirit of Nordcode, we emphasise and encourage the following:

the focus on working papers rather than finished work (although such work is not excluded)

the opportunity to discuss and develop emerging concepts and question established ones

the focus on assessing contributions based on potential and providing constructive, forward looking rather than normative advice in reviews, in order to create an including and encouraging community.

In order to support the above, innovative formats are encouraged apart from the written text, which allow for creative, critical and constructive discussions to stimulate the development of emergent ideas and researchers.

In case the abstract is accepted the working paper will also be accepted, as long as the working paper is in line with the content of the abstract, properly completed and meets sufficient quality standards. The reviewers can/will comment and advice for alterations.

Accepted final papers will be published on the seminar webpage.

Participation in the seminar is free of charge.

Time line

Abstract deadline: March 31st
Accept/rejection message: April 30th
Working paper deadline: August 30th
Final acceptance/comments: September 15th
Deadline for the finished paper: October 15th

November 22-24, 2016
University of Southern Denmark, Kolding, Denmark.

The theme of the 15th Nordcode seminar is mediation and design. While the designed object may communicate meaning and can be understood as mediating in multimodal ways in itself, design is also communicated, represented, set in discourse or mediated in various ways. Likewise most designs appear as mediations before their realisation as objects and some designs never go beyond their state as mediated ideas. Mediation seem to be crucial to design both ante and post factum in numerous respects.

The seminar is taking place in the newly built “design” campus of University of Southern Denmark, and the museum Trapholt, both located in the town of Kolding.

For more information about the program, key speakers and practical information, please visit the organizers webpage.

One beautiful day this July [2016], we received extremely sad and surprising news. We heard our very good friend and close colleague, Viktor Hjort from Gothenburg, passed away after his fight against a devious illness.

From Nordcode’s early days, Viktor was key in shaping the network and keeping it fresh and alive. He not only planned and hosted a number of successful seminars and meetings, Viktor also eagerly and tirelessly contributed to countless discussions and developments within our happy community. It is really difficult to think about the network without him.

We remember Viktor as a particularly warm-hearted, wise, and present person. He always showed strong devotion and interest in issues at hand – in terms of scholarly topics in design and other areas or our joint courses and research projects, as well as in our personal conversations. Viktor deserved many more prosperous years, in both his scholarship and personal life, but his path was crudely cut off way too early. We know his spirit will carry on indefinitely.

We want to express our deep condolences to Viktor’s family and friends.

Sail in peace Viktor!

On the behalf of the whole Nordcode family,
Toni-Matti, Martina, Monika, Anders, Susann

Grace Lees-Maffei

Reader in Design History, Dept. of Design, School of Creative Arts,
University of Hertfordshire

The Mediation Focus in Design History: An Intellectual History

Design history’s prevailing focus on production prompted a reactionary consumption turn in the 1990s. In this talk I will reflect on the intellectual history of the concept of mediation within design history as something that gained in prominence during the consumption turn, and since then. The consumption turn involved the study of mediating discourses in the understanding of design, but it was not until well into the current century that the term ‘mediation’ was posited as a description of a cogent concept with sufficient critical mass to constitute a ‘mediation turn’. As nodal phases in the design lifecycle, production, mediation and consumption provide design historians and others interested in understanding design with a choice of entry points that can be examined as focal concerns, or simultaneously, or in combination. I will illustrate this talk with examples from my own work and those of others.

André Jansson

Professor of Media and Communication Studies, Department of Geography, Media and Communication, Karlstad University

Mediatization and Social Design: A Critical Approach

Through the appropriation of new media we can extend our capabilities as autonomous human beings. Media can liberate us from the constraints of time, space and social cohesion. At the same time, however, mediatization means that new forms of social and technological dependence emerge, accompanied by experiences of frustration, stress and existential anxiety. Mediatization is an inherently dialectical process, where design plays a lubricating role through making media devices and services culturally meaningful and user-friendly, sometimes even self-instructive. But critical understandings of mediatization also actualize the growing need for design that can respond to the new discontents that haunt our media-saturated lives. This regards anything from the shaping of digital interfaces to the creation of alternative physical environments for media (non-)use. In this talk I present a systematized view of the interplay between mediatization and design processes, followed by a critical discussion of the current role of social design initiatives.

Anders V. Munch

Professor of Design Culture, Department of Design and Communication, University of Southern Denmark

Close Encounters? Mediating Design Through Brand Spaces

The design culture is highly influenced by countless visual presentations of products in digital and print mass media, and the physical encounters with material products could seem to diminish. Brand spaces and flagship stores attempt to compensate by staging products as part of a brand universe to offer individual experiences – as well as further photo opportunities for social or mass-media circulation. Architecture, interior design and visual merchandizing are parts of a mix of media that communicate both visual and material qualities, themes, atmospheres and meanings. ’Everything is media’ in branding (Liz Moor, The Rise of Brands 2007: 46), but there is, of course, huge differences between mass-media appearances of graphic design and visual communication and the more singular physical and spatial means for individual spaces. In this talk I will discuss different kinds of brand spaces and focus on how they amplify or echo material qualities and product style as spatial, visual and physical experience. Brand spaces ranging from small shop-in-shops and fairs to brand museums offer perspectives on the role of brand space as ’medium’ for communication of product qualities and meanings as well as hinges between close encounters and mass-media circulation of design products.

Design and mediation

15th NORDCODE Seminar

University of Southern Denmark,

Kolding, Denmark

November 22th-24th 2016

We hereby invite for submissions to the 15th Nordcode seminar on design and its mediations. While the designed object may communicate meaning and can be understood as mediating in multimodal ways in itself, design is also communicated, represented, set in discourse or mediated in various ways. Likewise most designs appear as mediations before their realisation as objects and some designs never go beyond their state as mediated ideas. Mediation seem to be crucial to design both ante and post factum in numerous respects.

Scholars and doctoral students are welcomed from design studies, design history & culture, media, communication and branding studies, interaction design and related fields to take part in the seminar with working papers. The papers may present finished research, work-in-progress or initial ideas, as we invite to further discussion and co-development of proposed ideas.

Contributions may relate to one of the following topics or to the general ideas of the theme:

The design of media and channels – including new media, social media, etc., as well as traditional media forms

Design in the media – the role of media and the public for the perception and understanding of design

The multimodality of design

Digital design objects and media in physical forms and vice versa

The role of prototypes, provotypes and other similar artefacts as mediation

We also welcome other contributions on the more general Nordcode theme of communicative aspects of artefacts, aesthetic qualities of physical products and objects, and design processes related to the theme.

Abstracts for working papers (max 400 words + 5 keywords) should be emailed before March 28th to:nordcode2016@sdu.dk

Working papers are expected to have a final length of 2500 words. Although we recommend APA references, the structure and format of paper submissions is free as we encourage discussion across disciplinary borders. In the informal spirit of Nordcode, we furthermore invite you to present in creative and innovative formats.

All submitted papers will be reviewed and accepted final papers published on the seminar webpage. There may be further possibilities for journal publication, but this is still under investigation.

Participation in the seminar is free of charge.

Important dates:March 28: Submission of abstracts and intention to participate
April: feedback on abstracts
July 31:: Deadline for paper submission for review
September 31: Notification of acceptance of papers
October 30: Deadline for final working papers
November 22-24: Seminar

OrganisationThe seminar is organised by the Department of Design and Communication and SDU Design Research, University of Southern Denmark, Kolding.